Chapter 152: The Desert?!

Liang Xingteng did his best to answer the questions posed by Xu Han and his companions, while also sharing all the intelligence he had gathered regarding the opponents they might potentially encounter.

The remaining two-plus hours slipped away in the blink of an eye.

Liang Xingteng glanced at the time.

It was eleven-fifty.

He stood up and said, "Time is running out. Bring the supplies over."

Shortly after, several soldiers walked in carrying backpacks.

"The water and dry rations are in here. Make sure you pack them properly."

"And take this as well."

As he spoke, he pulled out a few miniature cameras and handed them to the group.

"Attach these micro-cameras to your bodies so we can monitor your situation at any time."

"The moment something goes wrong, your principal and I will go in and rescue you."

Everyone nodded in succession and attached the micro-cameras to their clothes.

After a quick calibration, the feed from the cameras appeared on the main command room's monitors.

Then, the group walked out of the chief commander's tent together and headed toward the forest.

A few minutes later, Xu Han saw a thick bank of fog blocking the path ahead.

However, this fog was quite peculiar.

It covered only a large surrounding area, and outside that boundary, there wasn't even a wisp of vapor.

The time struck exactly twelve o'clock.

The previously blinding white fog gradually grew thinner, parting to reveal a gap.

Through the opening, one could vaguely make out the scenery inside.

"Time is up. You may enter."

Liang Xingteng took a step back and saluted Xu Han and the others, saying, "Wishing you a safe and smooth journey!"

Wang Yuan also saluted, his gaze solemn, "May the wind be at your back!"

The soldiers behind them lowered their weapons in unison and saluted solemnly.

Ye Yuanzheng gave them a slight, encouraging nod.

The muscles on Jiang Bin's cheeks twitched a few times, and he squeezed out a smile, "I will have a victory banquet prepared and waiting for you!"

"Return safely, not a single one of you is allowed to be missing!"

Heavy emotions weighed on everyone's hearts.

Xu Han smiled and said, "We aren't going to our deaths; we're just going to pick up some items."

"We'll be back as soon as we grab them! We're off."

With that, he turned around and walked straight toward the gap.

The others also waved their farewells, following closely behind Xu Han through the opening.

As soon as the five of them stepped inside, the gap was once again swallowed up by the thick fog.

"Will they succeed?" Liang Xingteng murmured under his breath.

They had managed to obtain information on all the opponents for this trip to the secret realm ruins.

Yet, judging by the intelligence, every single one of them was far too strong!

Ye Yuanzheng, however, smiled faintly and said, "Of course, I have high hopes for them."

"Well? Care to make a wager this time?"

"If I lose, I'll return two bottles of Night Fruit Wine to you; if I win, you'll gift me two Epic-tier equipment pieces."

"I'll hand them out as rewards to those little fellows."

Liang Xingteng rolled his eyes.

This old scoundrel was trying to fleece him again.

After a moment of contemplation, he nodded and replied, "Two pieces is out of the question, just one."

Ye Yuanzheng nodded readily, "One is fine by me."

Liang Xingteng looked back toward the boundless fog.

Let's gamble on it, then.

He had never won against this old fogey before, and this time... he probably wouldn't win either, right?

Trading a single Epic-tier equipment piece in exchange for these young pups returning in glorious triumph—well worth it!

Jiang Bin waved his hand and said, "Let's go, let's go monitor these little ones."

Everyone nodded and walked together toward the chief commander's tent.

...

Xu Han and his companions stood within the forest, looking back at the dense fog behind them.

The mist stretched out to both sides like a towering wall, extending endlessly into the distance without a visible end.

Yet, inside the barrier, they remained completely unaffected.

Surrounded by the endless woods, Xu Han identified their bearings, and the group set off toward the city ruins.

A few minutes later, they encountered the first ferocious beast within the secret realm ruins.

The creature resembled a wild wolf.

Its entire body was covered in dark brown fur, and its scarlet eyes locked firmly onto Xu Han and the others, while saliva constantly dripped from its jaws.

A faint golden light flickered across Xu Han's pupils as he checked the beast's attributes.

[Name: Mane Hound]
[Race: Canine]
[Level: 21]
[Skill 1: Bloodlust LV.2 (Passive skill: entering a bloodlust state upon taking damage, increasing attack and speed by 40% until the target is killed)]
[Skill 2: Devour LV.2 (Devours enemy flesh to restore its own health, cooldown: 1 minute)]
[Skill 3: Divine Speed LV.1 (Increases movement speed by 80% for 2 seconds, cooldown: 5 minutes)]

A level 21 beast posed zero threat to them.

Hua Piaowu volunteered, "Let me warm up with this one!"

The others nodded in agreement.

Hua Piaowu summoned a sturdily built spiritual puppet. The puppet held a shield in one hand and a broad saber in the other, gazing steadily at the Mane Hound.

The Mane Hound let out a low growl and lunged fiercely toward the spiritual puppet.

The puppet raised its shield.

Thud!

The Mane Hound crashed headfirst into the shield, leaving it dizzy and disoriented.

Then, the broad saber descended, cleanly executing the Mane Hound in a single strike.

A look of smug satisfaction appeared on Hua Piaowu's face.

That was easy enough. Without even lifting a finger herself, her spiritual puppet had easily dispatched the opponent.

Seeing that the beasts in the forest were not particularly formidable, the group slightly lowered their guard and continued deeper into the woods.

...

At the Brahma Country entrance, the cloaked figure led his companions into the secret realm ruins.

He said in a deep voice, "Advance at top speed. Our destination: the city ruins."

"Understood!" the others chorused.

Meanwhile, the teams from Annam and White Elephant were also rushing toward the city ruins at maximum speed.

...

Night gradually fell.

Xu Han and his companions finally emerged from the dense forest.

However, what lay before them was not the city ruins they expected, but an endless, boundless desert.

This time, not only were Xu Han and his team stunned, but even the spectators watching through the screens were completely dumbfounded.

"Old Liang, who drew your map?" Ye Yuanzheng smacked his lips, turning to look at Liang Xingteng beside him. "Does he not have eyes? How could he miss a desert this massive?"

Liang Xingteng scratched his head, feeling utterly bewildered at this point.

What was going on here?

According to the map drawn by the intelligence officers, once they walked out of the forest, shouldn't they have been right at the city ruins?

What on earth did this desert mean?

Jiang Bin furrowed his brows deeply and muttered, "Could it be that the secret realm has undergone further integration?"

Liang Xingteng clenched his fists tightly and murmured, "That seems to be the only plausible explanation now."

Secret realm ruins were the product of a secret realm gradually merging with the outside world.

However, if the integration was incomplete, further merging processes could suddenly manifest new terrain and unexpected beasts.

Wang Yuan frowned heavily. "Of all times, why now? What terrible damned luck!"

Without a map, nobody had any idea how vast this desert actually was.

If this massive desert had only manifested on the Dragon Country side while leaving other directions unaffected, teams from other countries would undoubtedly arrive at the city ruins ahead of schedule and seize the treasures.

That was definitely not a scenario anyone wanted to see.

Liang Xingteng muttered, "What an inauspicious start..."

"Right now, we can only hope that this desert has manifested at the entrances of the other countries as well."

...

Xu Han and his friends stared out at the boundless expanse of sand.

"Was this part on the map?"

"Doesn't look like it..."

"Could there be an error in the maps provided by the Chief Commanders?"

"Impossible. The intelligence officers they dispatch are all elites; errors like this just don't happen when mapping."

"What should we do now?"

Everyone turned their gazes collectively toward Xu Han.